Warning: Exclusive claims ahead.
No, not about what curriculum or method of education to use, these claims are about something much more basic–more foundational–than that.
I am about to make an exclusive claim about a foundation. Actually, I’m not personally making the claim. Someone else did; I’m just committed to publicizing it.
Allow me to digress for a moment. I find the word “panoply” fascinating. According to my Apple dictionary, panoply means a “complete or impressive collection of things; a splendid display”–especially, historically, in the context of a “complete set of arms or suit of armor,” and originally referring to “complete protection for spiritual warfare.”
But what’s a panoply got to do with a foundation and exclusive claims? Well, everything actually. Many leaders, even some among those who claim to be part of Christendom, would have us believe that all the varied ideas and diverse religious philosophies promoted around the world today represent a panoply from which it is perfectly right and proper to choose our spiritual tools and practices. People speak of drawing from the wells of various “wisdom traditions” (i.e. other religions) in order to enhance their relationship with God. (An example of one prominent practice drawn from non-Christian wells, yet white-washed and paraded through Christendom in an intricate deception, is what’s commonly called “contemplative prayer.”)
And here I show my hand, with no apologies. This highly touted, supposed panoply, brought to you courtesy of the world’s religions, is an absolute fraud, an elaborate deception–highly billed, yes, but a hoax all the same.
All ideas, all philosophies, and all religions are not equally valid. There, I said it. But the idea is not originally mine.
It was Jesus of Nazareth who made exclusive claims to truth. Listen to this from Luke 6:46-49.
“And why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?
Everyone who comes to Me, and hears My words, and acts upon them, I will show you whom he is like:
he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation upon the rock; and when a flood rose, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.
But the one who has heard, and has not acted accordingly is like a man who built a house upon the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.” (italics mine)
Do you see? Jesus didn’t say that the ones who don’t listen and act on His words didn’t build a house. No, they built a house all right. They invested the effort, the time, and the money to build. But they did all that “without any foundation.” Interestingly, until the storm came, the house with no foundation may have looked to the casual observer to be just as solid as the house built on rock. But, in fact, what they built on was loose and shifty. Let’s face it; even wind can push sand around.
Further, He doesn’t even say they built on a wrong foundation. He says they built “without any foundation” at all. And He says the only way to have a foundation that withstands the deluge is to listen to His words and act accordingly. Nothing else but His teaching will do as a foundation. Nothing else even is a foundation.
This is an exclusive claim. It’s His way or nothing. There aren’t any alternate foundations. The options are 1) a solid foundation of obedience to Jesus’ words or 2) no foundation at all.
Jesus most certainly made exclusive claims. He said if you’re not acting according to His teaching, you have no foundation. No foundation. That’s not just what I like to think. It’s what He said, and a person who is true to the real Jesus will uphold those claims.
Contrary to today’s popular thought, Jesus most certainly did not proclaim either the equality of all religions, or their neutrality. In the Old Testament, God said, “I am the Lord, and there is no other. Besides Me there is no God.” (Isaiah 45:5) In the New Testament, Jesus said (John 14:6), “No one comes to the Father, but through Me.” And, yes, in Luke 6, if you’re not putting “My” words into practice, you have “no foundation,” and you are doomed to go down with a big crash one day. A person who is true to the real Jesus will not contradict His exclusive claims by embracing the idea of “truth” in all religions. In fact, Jesus said good fruit isn’t produced on a bad tree. (See Luke 6:43) It would be foolish to go looking for true spiritual fruit on a tree of false religion whose roots grow straight out of hell.
Consistent with this, in Acts 17, God’s messenger Paul didn’t tell the Athenians they were just fine for adding one more statue (“to an unknown god”) to their line-up of idols. Rather, in verse 16, “…his spirit was being provoked within him as he was beholding the city full of idols.” He boldly told the Athenians where they were theologically wrong, and that though the Creator had overlooked their prior ignorance, God was “now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man who He has appointed [Jesus], having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.” (verse 30, italics mine)
What has this got to do with education and parenting? Just why should we care? Here’s why: our children’s spiritual destiny hangs in the balance.
If we believe our children’s spiritual life is the most important aspect of their lives, then intentionally teaching them the truth should be highest priority. Warning them of false teachers and false teachings, as the New Testament writers did, should be highest priority.
I would grant that traditional subjects, like Math and English, are important, even necessary, but in the final analysis, they have no strong and direct link to our children’s spiritual destiny. While we make time for the necessary traditional subjects, and for sundry extra-curriculars, have we neglected to also devote sufficient time to giving them the only real foundation to build the rest of their education and lives upon?
If we believe our children’s spiritual life is the most important aspect of their lives, then intentionally teaching them the truth should be highest priority. Warning them of false teachers and false teachings, as the New Testament writers did, should be highest priority.
I would grant that traditional subjects, like Math and English, are important, even necessary, but in the final analysis, they have no strong and direct link to our children’s spiritual destiny. While we make time for the necessary traditional subjects, and for sundry extra-curriculars, have we neglected to also devote sufficient time to giving them the only real foundation to build the rest of their education and lives upon?
Right now, we still have an opportunity to teach our children the truth. We can anchor them in God’s Word. We still have the freedom to expose the lies and arguments of the “no absolute truth” and “truth in all religions” crowd. But even as we do, the heralds of “no absolute truth” and “truth in all religions” are mobilized, strategizing, and boldly advancing. It could be that your family has already crossed paths with some of the most famous proponents of these ideas, though you may not have recognized them at the time. They are even showing up in homeschool catalogs.
We still have freedom, and there is still time, but realistically, it may not last. Sometimes, carefully thinking through and spelling out the things we are going to regret not doing can help to clarify which things we are doing that aren’t really worthy of as much of our time.
The context of the original word “panoply” was spiritual warfare. Interestingly, if all religions and all ideas are equally valid and good, then what is the point of spiritual warfare anyway? Why would there be a war of ideas if all ideas are all equally good?
The fact is that there is a war of ideas over Jesus’ exclusive claim that there is only one foundation. The only real panoply–the complete set of armor for protection in spiritual warfare– is found in Jesus and His Word. The only foundation for building a life on is Jesus and His Word.
If we don’t want our children stepping out in fake armor, cherry-picked from the false religions of the world, building lives “without any foundation” that are destined for great ruin, then we must make a serious priority of making sure they understand and can choose to apply and defend the exclusive truth of God’s Word and the exclusive claims of His Son. And that means we have got to be willing to dig in and do the hard work to understand, apply, and defend the truth ourselves, if we’ve any hope of properly arming them. We dare not leave it to the church or to anyone else. Though the choice to obey is ultimately theirs, the responsibility is squarely in our own laps to make them well-aquainted with the truth.
There is only one foundation. It’s time to build on the Rock–while there’s still time. The coming storm will reveal whose house stands and whose house falls.
May yours be one that stands.
Homeschooling with her husband, Scott, since 2001, Carol believes nothing is too difficult for God. She is a passionate encourager and loves using creative means–including writing music, singing, speaking, and blogging–to encourage others to trust God through all the adventures He calls them to. You can read more from her at her Unsmotherable Delight blog (udelight.blogspot.com), where you’ll find faith-filled original songs, favorite scriptures, family stories, and even a little film about adoption, all designed to inspire and lift your spirit. Her original ‘theme song’ titled Captain’s Anthem can be heard on Vimeo at http://vimeo.com/30769152.
Scripture quotations taken from the NASB, except where otherwise specified.